Indicator lamp housing



Nov. 6, 1956 M. F. HAYES INDICATOR L'AMP HOUSING Filed Jan. 24, 1956 INVENTOR. Marv/f7 F Hayes HTTOQNEYS United States Patent 2,769,974 INDICATOR LAMP HOUSING Marvin F. Hayes, Compton, Califi, assignor to Theodore W. Hallerberg, Los Angeles, Calif.

Application January 24, 1956, Serial No. 561,170 3 Claims. (Cl. 340--366) This invention relates to warning devices of the type used on aircraft, automotive vehicles and the like and is particularly directed to an improved housing for the light portion of such a device.

It is the present practice in many types of aircraft to provide a series of warning devices, each responsive to a separate monitored condition or element, that become illuminated in the event of an abnormality. Such devices must have several characteristics if they are to be acceptable. First, they must be of small size and light weight but with a relatively large illuminated area; second, they must be of simple construction and capable of withstanding severe vibration; third, they must contain more than one lamp so that failure of a lamp will not give rise to a false indication of safety; fourth, they must be simple to repair and preferably capable of lamp replacement from the front of the panel to which they are attached; fifth, they must be capable of easy dimming or extinguishrnent by a simple manipulation at the will of the operator.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide a lamp housing portion of a warning device that has all of the above recited characteristics.

Briefly stated, the present invention comprises the combination of a housing, stationary contacts carried by the housing, a rotatable and hollow lamp-carrying block mounted in the housing and having an indicia bearing translucent opening at one side thereof, and at least one lamp insertable from the outside of the block illuminating the interior thereof and thus the indicia when in one position. When the rotatable block is moved out of the position in which the indicia are displayed the lamp is, at the same time, moved away from the contacts carried in the housing and thus extinguished, and the movement may be such that the lamp is brought into position for replacement from the front of the panel.

A detailai description of the preferred embodiment of the invention is contained in the following specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Fig. l is a fragmentary front view of a panel showing a plurality of lamp housing portions embodying the present invention applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a section on line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 showing the parts in a rotated position and one of the lamps withdrawn for replacement;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view similar to Fig. 2 showing the parts in a position in which the lamps are extinguished;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view similar to Fig. 4 showing the parts in a portion in which one lamp only is extinguished; and

Fig. 6 is a section on line 55 of Fig. 2.

In the drawings the parts are shown somewhat enlarged over the size used in actual practice, in the interest of clarity. The present invention is shown embodied in a unit mounted for cooperation with a panel 10 having an opening 11 therein. The vertical sides of the opening 11 are slanted inwardly to the extent required to permit rotation of the lamp carrying block as hereinafter described.

A housing 12 is screwed, clipped or otherwise firmly fastened to the rear of the panel 10. The housing may be formed of insulating material if desired, although a metallic housing may be used if proper precautions are taken to insulate all current carrying contacts in a manner well known in the art. The housing is a generally hollow body with one side open and at the base of the housing there is disposed a spring contact 14 to which an external contact screw 16 is connected so that one side of the lamp circuit may be made. On opposite sides of the interior of the housing are additional spring contacts 18 and 19 each having a base portion fixed to the interior of the housing and receiving a contact screw 20 and 21 respectively to which the opposite side of a lamp circuit may be connected.

Within the housing 12 a hollow lamp-carrying block 25 is mounted for rotation on a central pin or pivot member 27. If desired, the pin 27 may extend entirely from the top to the bottom of the housing 12 or it may be interrupted and made in two halves as will occur to any skilled mechanic. It is only necessary that the pivot pin be such as to furnish a rugged support and at the same time a simple assembly and alignment operation.

The lamp-carrying block 25 is preferably made of insulating material and is hollowed in its interior. i In one form, the block is hexagonal and is bored to receive spaced lamps 29 and 30in spaced sides of the hexagon. It is apparent that the block may assume any desired configuration provided spaced fiat areas are formed for reception of the lamps and appropriate contacts. The lamps 29 and 30 are of the miniature unthreaded type AN327 in which the shell portion of the lamp represents a cylinder of the largest diameter of the entire unit. Thus the lamp is capable of insertion through the hole in the block 25 from the outside as shown in Fig. 3 with the bulb portion of the lamp lying within the hollow block 25. A small flange adjacent the base of the shell portion limits the extent to which the lamp can be inserted in the opening.

Within the block 25 and at the base thereof a dual contact 32 is provided which is fixed in place by a suitable fastening 34 which extends outwardly from the shell 25 into a detent and contact button 36. In the normal position of its operation the contact button 36 is received in a depression in the contact spring 14 which extends across the base of the housing 12 as shown in Fig. 2. The indicating device is thus centered with the block 25 symmetrically disposed with respect to the housing and associated contact springs 18 and 19.

The hollow block 25 is open at one side and receives an indicia bearing screen or translucent lens 40 across the opening. The screen is printed with the proper information which it is desired to display either in letters, figures or symbols and is preferably such that when lamps 29 and 30 are extinguished it is virtually impossible to read the indicia printed on the screen or lens 40. With the parts standing in the normal position shown in circuit completed between the common contact the individual lamp contacts 18 and 19 will result in both lamps 29 and 30 being illuminated. It will be seen that in the normal position the base contact of the respective lamps bears against the associated spring contacts 18 and 19 while the contact to the shell of each lamp is made through the common spring 32. Thus if, for any reason, the associated circuit of the warning device is closed, lamps 29 and 30 will be illuminated and the indicia printed on the screen 40 will thus become visible to the lbcation of the center pin 27 about operator and will warn him against the monitored condition which caused the illumination of the lamps.

Once having been warned it is sometimes desirable that the operator be able to dim or extinguish the lamps ci' pr v ndue g are du i g night fly n w th he presen invention, to dirn or extinguishthe display it is ni ly necessary that he push inwardly on one side or the other of the exposed portion of the housing 25 or on one side or the other of the lens 4a. By so doing he will rotate the housing about its pivot 27 into one of the po sitions shown in Fig. '4 or 5. In the position shown in Fig. 4, it will be seen that the base contacts of the lamps and 30 no longer bear against the contact springs 18 and 19 and the shell contact button 36 is no longer in contact with the spring 14. The circuit to the lamps is thus completely interrupted and the lamps will become extinguished. The parts are held in the position shown Fig; '4 by the friction of the springs 18 and 19 against the housing 25, If it is desired merely to dim the display by reducing the intensity to that provided by the illumination of a single lamp, the parts are rotated to the position shown in Fig. 5 in which only the lamp 29 i's'connected in the warning circuit. i i

The lamp carrying block can be mounted to stand flush withthei'nstrument panel or'ca n be made to lie normally slightly above the panel merely by changing the which the block rot t s As previously noted it is highly desirable that the indicating device be capable of re-bulbing without dismantling the unit. A multiplicity of lamps is desired because a single larnp were used and it were to fail, the operator would be given a false indication that the ciruit associated with the lamp was in proper condition. By using a multiplicity of lamps this false indication is avoided. If the'display through the screen 40 is dim it is generally an indication that one or the other of the lamps has burned out. It is only necessary, then, for the operator to rotate the block 25 to the position shown in Fig. 3 in which the base of the body carrying the burned out lamp is exposed through the opening in the panel. The burned out lamp can be removed by the fingers of'the operator as indicated and a new lamp insertedinto the opening where it will be held by frictional engagement by the spring shell contact 32.

It will be' noted that in the position shown in Fig. 3 the block 25 is steadied by reason of the reception of the front corner thereof into the depression in the spring 14 whichnormally receivesthe detent and contact button 35. Thus, even though the block is'freely rotatable in the housing bulb replacement can be accomplished very readily'because'of the stability of the block. The miniature. lamps used in devices of this character are so small that a steady base is required if they area, be properly inserted in the openingsintendedforthem.

Whilethe invention has been disclosed in conjunction with a specific form'and disposition of the parts it should be expressly understood that it is capable of numerous modifications and changes Without departing from the spirit of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A lamp container for an illuminatable warning device comprising an outer housing, a hollow lamp-carrying block mounted for rotation within said housing, said block having a portion thereof constituting a translucent indicia bearing face, at least one lamp having its bulb portion extending into said hollow block and having its base portion extending outwardly thereof, a stationary electrical contact carried within said housing and registering with said lamp base contact when said'block is in a predetermined position, said lamp base contacts being movable out of registry with said stationary contacts by partial rotation of said block, and means carried by said block to establish an electrical contact with the shell portion of said lamp, aid means including a stationary contact carried by said housing whereby the circuit to said lamp is opened when said block is rotated.

2. A lamp container for an illuminatable warning device comprising an outer housing, a hollow lamp-carrying block mounted for rotation within said housing, said block having a portion thereof constituting a translucent indicia bearing face, at least one lamp having its bulb portion extending into said hollow block and having its base contact portion extending outwardly thereof, said larrip being insertable and removable from the exterior of said block when said block is rotated within said housing to a position in which the base portion of said lamp is exposed, stationary electrical contacts carried within said housing and registering with said lamp base contacts when said block is in a predetermined position in which said translucent face is exposed, said lamp base contacts being movable out of registry with said stationary contacts by partial rotation of said block, and means carried by said block to establish an electrical contact with the shell portion of said lamp, said means including a stationary contactcarried by said housing whereby the circuit to said lamp is opened when said block is rotated.

3. A lamp container for an illuminatable warning device comprising a housing, a polygonal hollow lamp carrying block mounted for rotation within said housing, one face of said block constituting a translucent indicia bearing face, at least two lamps having their bulb portions extending into said block from spaced faces thereof and having their base portions extending outwardly thereof, stationary electrical contacts carried within said housing and registering with said lamp base contacts when said block is in a position to expose said translucent face, said lamp base contacts being movable out of registry with said stationary contacts by partial rotation of said block, and means carried by said block to establish an electrical contact with the shell portion of said lamp, said means including a stationary contact carried by said housing whereby the circuit to said lamp is opened when said block is rotated. I

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

